On October 12, 2017, The West Virginia Supreme Court issued a decision in State of West Virginia ex rel. v. Copper Beech Townhome Communities Twenty-Six, LLC, No. 17-0228, holding that the West Virginia Consumer Credit Protection Act (“WVCCPA”) does not apply to relationships between a landlord and tenant under a lease for residential real property. In reaching its decision, the Court noted that “in the forty-three years since the [WV]CCPA was enacted, this case is the first occasion in which any party has asserted before this Court that the Act applies to and regulates the landlord-tenant relationship.” The Court reasoned: Read More ›

With the recent decision in Spokeo v. Robbins, bloggers and legal commentators have spent much time discussing FCRA. The Spokeo decision is one for all of us to watch closely, but a check of basic compliance issues is always in order. This article focuses on handling consumer disputes, following a surprising verdict. Read More ›

Despite the presence of an arbitration provision in a loan agreement or other document, a lender may be required to file suit to bring certain claims against individuals or property. For instance, a lender may be forced to file suit either to foreclose on a mortgage, or to obtain a court order to recover, liquidate, and clear title to collateral. If the borrower asserts counterclaims against the lender in response to the suit, the lender may want to compel arbitration with respect to those counterclaims. However, because filing a complaint can constitute a waiver of a party’s right to compel arbitration, lenders must be extremely careful both in filing suit and in responding to counterclaims to prevent a waiver of their arbitration rights. A recent case from the Kentucky Court of Appeals, Kathleen Imhoff v. Lexington Public Library Board of Trustees, 2016 WL 192017, shows just how careful a litigant in Kentucky must be to avoid waiving his or her right to arbitration. Read More ›

TD Bank recently agreed to pay $850,000 as part of a multi-state settlement agreement with state attorneys from Connecticut, Florida, Maine, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. While the assurances in the settlement agreement only bind TD Bank, other companies with electronic records containing consumers’ personal information can benefit from this agreement by interpreting its requirements as minimum standards for their internal security policies and procedures. Read More ›

Many lenders may agree
that one of the thornier consumer protection regulations is the Equal Credit
Opportunity Act’s rule that limits the ability of a lender to require a spousal
guarantee. Regulation B lays out the
rule in 12 CFR §1002.7(d)(1), and makes some effort to clarify the rule in its
Official Interpretations. In a nutshell,
the rule bars a creditor from requiring the signature of a spouse or other
person that is not a joint applicant, on any debt instrument if the applicant
qualifies individually for the amount and terms of credit requested under the
lender’s standards of creditworthiness.

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Courtney Rogers Perrin practices in the Nashville office as a member of the Firm’s Electronic Payments and Blockchain practice groups. She assists clients with regulatory compliance, contract negotiations, acquisitions and fund formation relating to credit card processing and fintech enterprises, including smart contracts and virtual currency matters.